Day 3 - Capri

What a beautiful day in Italy!  Today was sunny and close to 70 degrees.  I don't think we could have asked for better weather.  

We started out the day with breakfast in the hotel and then loaded a couple of small busses to ride down to the harbor.  Our hydrofoil arrived shortly after we did, so we found our seats and prepared for departure.  Some of the kids were a bit disappointed that the windows weren't clear enough to take good pictures, but we had plenty of photo-ops the rest of the day.  The ride was really smooth for the speed the hydrofoil goes--none of the kids really exhibited any motion sickness.

Immediately after arriving in Capri, our group decided to add an optional boat tour of the island to the day's itinerary.  The students were given a choice whether they wanted to go on a tour of the coast and caves of the island or spend more free time in the two towns--all 24 chose the boat tour.  Many students told me that this was the highlight of the day for them.  We all fit onto a single boat that slowly toured around the coastline.  Our guide explained the various geographic features, pointing out the baby elephant stone arch, the bronze statue of a fisherman, and the cliff off of which Tiberius would throw his enemies.  Our expert captain navigated in and out of several caves, one of which was only a couple of feet wider than the boat itself.  These caves, or grottos as they are called locally, are named for the various colors reflected through the water.  Two of the grottos were "red" because of the coral growing, one was "white" because of the limestone reflection, and one gave us a little bit of the blue reflection that is present in the famous "blue grotto" of the island.  Because of the time required and the additional expense, we were not able to go into the actual "blue grotto" but the caves we saw gave us a pretty good experience of the island overall.

Upon our return to the marina, we loaded into two minibuses and began the exiting trip up to the town of Anacapri (meaning “higher Capri”).  The single road that runs between the marina and Anacapri is probably no wider than a single lane of traffic on an interstate and it winds around up the side of the island.  The tiny buses, cars, and motorcycles nagivate the road with alarming precision and seemingly careless speed.  It is amazing that the traffic actually moves at all with the tight clearances between vehicles, pedestrians, and the walls and buildings surrounding the road. 

Once we were in Anacapri, students were given some free time and a chance to eat lunch.  Most of the group took the opportunity to ride a chair lift to the top of the island.  Those who are afraid of heights bravely faced their fear for the chance to experience the view from the top.  Looking out over enormous cliffs, students were able to see the entire island and the full panoramic view of the surrounding Bay of Naples.

Our day on the island ended with an hour spent in the town of Capri.  Here students were able to spend some more time wandering through the small town shopping for souvenirs, eating more gelato and taking in the ambience of Capri.  Rather than take another set of minibuses back down to the marina, we rode the funicular (an inclined train—this one running on a cables system) for the descent.  Our return trip to Sorrento offered students a chance to get the pictures of both Capri and the Sorrento coastline because the second hydrofoil was equipped with a viewing deck and places to sit and stand outside during the trip.

We are back in Sorrento now—students are once again exploring the town before we eat a late dinner.  After reading my blog this morning one of the kids told me that it seemed like just a list of foods we ate—so why not just give you a view of the highlights from today?

1.     Pizza Margherita – one of the lunch options that we had at lunch today.  Everyone who didn’t order it had major regret.

2.     Lemon ice with orange juice—a glass of lemon slush (anything with lemon is great here—the lemons are everywhere) with fresh squeezed blood orange juice added.  A little sweet, a little sour--delicious

3.     Caprese Salad—Good anywhere, but especially good in its namesake area.

4.     Tonight’s lasagna—we haven’t eaten it yet, but I can imagine!

For any car enthusiasts out there--here is the first Ferrari sighting of the trip--this Ferrari California was parked in downtown Sorrento before dinner tonight.